Terry Hall: lead singer of the Specials dies aged 63 - The Guardian

Terry Hall, the pb vocalist of the Specials and a erstwhile subordinate of Fun Boy Three and the Colourfield, has died aged 63, his bandmates successful the Specials person confirmed.

“It is with large sadness that we denote the passing, pursuing a little illness, of Terry, our beauteous friend, member and 1 of the astir superb singers, songwriters and lyricists this state has ever produced,” the set tweeted.

“Terry was a fantastic hubby and begetter and 1 of the kindest, funniest, and astir genuine of souls. His euphony and his performances encapsulated the precise essence of life… the joy, the pain, the humour, the combat for justice, but mostly the love.”

The set asked for respect for Hall’s family’s privacy.

Neville Staple, Hall’s bandmate successful the Specials and Fun Boy Three, said helium was “deeply saddened” by the news.

“We knew Terry had been unwell but didn’t realise however superior until recently,” he wrote. “We had lone conscionable confirmed immoderate 2023 associated euphony agreements together. This has deed maine hard and indispensable beryllium highly hard for Terry’s woman and family.”

Hall joined the archetypal incarnation of the Specials – past called the Automatics – soon aft the Coventry set formed successful 1977, replacing vocalist Tim Strickland. After a stint arsenic the Coventry Automatics, they became Special AKA, known arsenic the Specials. The pioneering 2 Tone set roseate acknowledgment to the enactment of Joe Strummer, who invited them to enactment the Clash live, and of BBC Radio 1 DJ John Peel.

They released their debut single, Gangsters (a reworking of Prince Buster’s Al Capone) successful 1979, which reached No 6 successful the UK singles chart. They would predominate the Top 10 implicit the adjacent 2 years, peaking with their 2nd No 1 single, and calling card, Ghost Town, successful 1981. The lyrics, written by the band’s main songwriter, Jerry Dammers, dealt with Britain’s municipality decay, unemployment and disfranchised youth.

Its popularity peaked successful aboriginal summertime 1981 arsenic riots betwixt young Black radical and constabulary were erupting crossed the UK successful effect to racist favoritism and the usage of stop-and-search tactics. It remained astatine No 1 for 3 weeks, spending 10 weeks successful the Top 40, and is wide considered 1 of the top popular records of each time. “It sits successful the past, brooding and glowering astatine us, its remarkable, acheronian powerfulness undimmed,” Guardian professional Alexis Petridis wrote successful 2020.

Among those to wage tribute connected Tuesday was instrumentalist Billy Bragg. “The Specials were a solemnisation of however British civilization was envigorated by Caribbean migration but the onstage demenour of their pb vocalist was a reminder that they were successful the superior concern of challenging our cognition of who we were successful the precocious 1970s,” he tweeted.

Jane Wiedlin of the Go-Go’s and Hall’s erstwhile spouse wrote that she was “gutted”. “He was a lovely, sensitive, talented and unsocial person. Our highly little romance resulted successful the opus Our Lips Are Sealed, which volition everlastingly necktie america unneurotic successful euphony history. Terrible quality to perceive this,” she tweeted.

Squeeze’s Chris Difford called Hall “a antheral of fewer words verbally but truthful galore large words successful song. I ever admired and envied his expanse of the pen”, portion Rowetta remembered him arsenic “one of the top frontmen from 1 of the top bands. And a gorgeous, kind, down to world man.” Badly Drawn Boy called him “a philharmonic hero”, portion Sleaford Mods said Hall was “King of the Suedeheads. A large man. Hope you find bid present mate.” Boy George tweeted that helium was “very sad”, adding: “Absolutely loved him arsenic an artist. Sad day!”

Hall was calved successful Coventry connected 19 March 1959 to a household who predominantly worked successful the car industry. He was an academically talented kid and besides a noted footballer who was invited to effort retired for West Bromwich Albion – an accidental his parents declined based connected the inconvenience of travelling crossed the Midlands. After helium sailed done the 11-plus exam, his parents besides declined his spot astatine a adjacent grammar school.

“All of a abrupt they were expected to bargain books and a schoolhouse uniform,” he told Fantastic Man. “I’d conscionable been walking to schoolhouse dressed successful my shot kit. So there’s ever been a spot of that kicking astir successful the backmost of my mind. Not being educated. Wondering what would person happened if I’d gone.”

In 2019, Hall told the comedian Richard Herring that aged 12 helium was abducted by a paedophile ringing successful France, an incidental helium had antecedently touched connected successful the 1983 Fun Boy Three azygous Well Fancy That!, which blamed a teacher for the ordeal: “You took maine to France connected the committedness of teaching maine French,” helium sang.

Hall “kept it hidden” and didn’t archer his parents. “They some worked successful factories. They got paid successful cash. Me dada was a dense drinker. They had their ain lives, you know?”

It resulted successful Hall being medicated passim his teenage years and surviving with slump and manic depression. “I was connected Valium erstwhile I was 13 and it took maine retired of beingness for six months,” he told the Big Issue.

He dropped retired of acquisition astatine the property of 14 and felt pushed towards non-conformism. “I tin laughter astir it present but it benignant of switched thing successful my head, and it’s similar I don’t person to bash that, and that’s erstwhile I started not listening to anyone.”

Pioneering … The Specials. Photograph: John Rodgers/Redferns

His governmental awakening came successful his teenage years “when I discovered that moving men’s clubs had a colour barroom connected their doors. You could lone get successful if you were white. That truly shook me. I couldn’t enactment it out.”

After moving arsenic a bricklayer, among different jobs, helium joined his archetypal band, the punk outfit Squad, inspired by the Clash and the Sex Pistols. His older sister, and guiding influence, Teresa introduced him to Trojan Records, portion it was David Bowie’s 1975 medium Young Americans that pushed Hall towards becoming a singer, he told the Guardian successful 2009. “I travel from a gypsy-spirited family, and everyone utilized to sing successful pubs whether you liked it oregon not. I didn’t privation to beryllium that benignant of singer. Then erstwhile I was 16 this medium gave maine a look, a sound, and a mode of holding yourself. Apparently each his apparel were from WalMart astatine this time. He enactment a blond streak successful his hairsbreadth and we would bash the same.”

Then came the Specials. The set released their self-titled debut medium successful October 1979 and received wide acclaim for blending a punk sensibility – and crisp lyrics astir the degradation of modern Britain – with the accepted Jamaican ska sound, adjacent explicitly updating hits by the likes of Toots and the Maytals, Prince Buster and Dandy Livingstone.

Today the medium is wide considered a landmark recording: it ranked astatine No 42 successful Pitchfork’s database of the champion albums of the 1970s, and No 260 connected the NME’s database of the 500 top albums of each time, published successful 2013. The set released a second, adjacent darker album, More Specials, successful 1980.

The multiracial radical were progressive successful the Rock Against Racism movement, played payment concerts for anti-racist and anti-nuclear organisations, and besides supported the 1978 Right to Work march protesting unemployment. “Our authorities leaders aren’t funny successful knowing the mode radical feel,” Hall told the New York Times. “If they were, they’d conscionable resign, due to the fact that they aren’t helping anybody. The kids can’t spell to the premier curate and say, look, ‘We are unemployed, what are you going to bash to assistance us?’ There’s nary mode they tin attack radical similar that. So they explicit themselves by smashing things up.’’

After the occurrence of Ghost Town successful 1981, the set divided bitterly that July. “It felt similar the cleanable infinitesimal to halt the Specials portion one,” Hall said. “We’d gone from 7 kids successful the backmost of a van to being presented with golden discs and I ne'er felt massively comfy with that.

Chart occurrence … Fun Boy Three successful 1983. Photograph: Steve Rapport/Getty Images

Hall formed Fun Boy Three with his Specials bandmates Staple and Lynval Golding. They besides enjoyed illustration occurrence for respective years, collaborating doubly with miss set Bananarama, connected It Ain’t What You Do (It’s the Way That You Do It) and Really Saying Something. Hall would besides onshore a Top 10 azygous with Our Lips Are Sealed, a opus helium co-wrote with US indie prima – and past romanticist spouse – Jane Wiedlin for her set the Go-Go’s.

Hall would signifier different band, the Colourfield, successful 1984, which had a deed with Thinking of You. He became a predominant collaborator implicit consequent decades, moving with the likes of the Lightning Seeds’ Ian Broudie, US histrion Blair Booth, Toots and the Maytals, Lily Allen, Blur’s Damon Albarn – and aboriginal with his set Gorillaz – and Eurythmics’ Dave Stewart with whom helium formed a duo known arsenic Vegas successful 1992.

Hall wasn’t portion of a Specials reunion, the Specials Mk 2, which lasted from 1993 to 1998. He released his debut solo medium successful 1994, Home, produced by Broudie; a follow-up, Laugh, came successful 1997.

In 2008, inspired by the Pixies’ reunion successful 2004, Hall announced that helium would beryllium reforming the Specials for a circuit and caller music, albeit without founding subordinate Jerry Dammers, who claimed helium had been forced out. “The Specials was this large spread which took up 4 years of my life,” Hall told the Telegraph. “More than anything, I truly wanted to spot these radical again.”

They embarked connected a 30th day circuit successful 2009 and performed astatine the 2012 London Olympics closing concert, but faced the decease of drummer John Bradbury, and the departure of vocalist Staple and guitarist Roddy Radiation implicit the adjacent fewer years.

The set would find themselves successful the quality again successful 2017, erstwhile 18-year-old Birmingham pistillate Saffiyah Khan was photographed facing disconnected with protesters astatine an EDL march portion wearing a Specials T-shirt. “It felt similar a vindication of everything the set had acceptable retired to do,” Hall said.

In 2019, they released a caller album, Encore, which featured Khan performing connected a caller song, 10 Commandments. It charted astatine No 1 successful the UK albums illustration – their highest-ever medium placing. “Achieving a archetypal No 1 medium successful our 60s restored our religion successful humanity,” Hall told the Quietus.

Hall was inactive struggling with his intelligence health, helium admitted astir this time. In 2003, helium had begun self-medicating with alcohol. In the past decennary of his life, helium sought medication, having been wary of it since being enactment connected Valium arsenic a teenager, arsenic good arsenic taking up creation therapy.

“It got to a constituent wherever I didn’t person a prime – and it’s done maine truthful overmuch good,” helium said. “Talking astir intelligence wellness problems is simply a conscious decision. It’s thing I privation to stock with people.”

Hall is survived by his wife, manager Lindy Heymann. They had 1 son; Hall has 2 older sons with his ex-wife, Jeanette Hall.

In 2019, Hall told Uncut magazine that helium had been enjoying his 60s, an property helium had aspired to since being a 27-year-old instrumentality of philharmonic lifers Andy Williams, Tony Bennett and Frank Sinatra. “I consciousness blessed to person reached that stage,” helium said. “A batch of radical deliberation that 60 is portion of the downward spiral, which it is if you let it to be, but you tin combat it and say, nary it isn’t – it’s conscionable portion of this story.”